Oregon sues US over detention of anti-racism protesters
PORTLAND: The US state of Oregon sued the US over the detention of residents during anti-racism protests in Portland, shortly after a judge ruled that journalists alleging local police had assaulted them could add federal agents to their own lawsuit.
In her suit against the Department of Homeland Security, the US Marshals Service and other federal agencies, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum alleges they have overstepped their powers in threatening, injuring or arresting protesters. The journalists made similar claims, saying police had assaulted them at Black Lives Matter demonstrations, coordinating their response with federal authorities.
Oregon cited two incidents it says took place in the past week. On July 12, a peaceful protester was struck in the head with an “impact weapon” and sustained severe injuries, according to the AG’s office. On Thursday, it said “an unmarked minivan with undercover federal agents wearing generic green military fatigues” forcibly detained a second protester, who was later released.
The Oregon Department of Justice has opened a investigation into the July 12 incident, according to the AG.
“We are today asking the federal court to stop the federal police from
secretly stopping and forcibly grabbing Oregonians off our streets,” Ms Rosenblum said in a statement.
The Department of Homeland Security, the US Marshals Service and US Customs and Border Protection didn’t immediately respond to emails and calls after regular business hours seeking comment on Oregon’s lawsuit.
The ruling in the journalists’ lawsuit, by a federal judge in Portland, came a day after he ordered a preliminary injunction against the alleged conduct. The plaintiffs include the Portland Mercury newspaper and local magazine photographer Mathieu Lewis-Rolland. The American Civil Liberties Union, which filed suit against the city last month on their behalf, made a request on Tuesday to amend the suit to include the new defendants.
Early on July 12, federal agents emerged from Portland police headquarters to begin “a campaign of wholesale violence against protesters and neutrals alike”, joined later by the local police, according to the revised complaint. Agents shot Mr Lewis-Rolland with “impact munitions” as he was filming and photographing them, the plaintiffs alleged. They said agents had used rubber bullets, tear gas and batons to disperse demonstrators, reporters and photographers.